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Key Moment
The Oklahoma City Thunder led for the entire second half of Friday evening’s exhibition game against the Boston Celtics, but it was during the second quarter that they broke the game open for good.
The two squads were knotted up at 29 apiece midway through the second frame, before the Thunder took off on a 12-2 run that would give them a permanent lead. Steven Adams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who tied for the game-high in scoring with 17 points apiece, led the run, as they combined for nine of the 12 points that OKC scored over the two-and-a-half-minute stretch.
Adams, who was a nightmare on the offensive glass during the first half, notched two put-back buckets over a 72-second span, while also knocking down a free throw. Gilgeous-Alexander also hit a pair of shots from the charity stripe, before canning a driving floater to give the Thunder a 38-31 lead.
Danilo Gallinari put a cap on the run during OKC’s next possession, as he swished a 3-pointer with 2:02 left in the first half.
The Celtics attempted to claw their way back during the third quarter but never got within a single possession. The Thunder maintained their lead all the way through to the final buzzer, walking away with a 98-84 win.
Key Player
Enes Kanter had been a double-double machine for the Celtics before the NBA season was put on hold. Four months later, not much has changed.
Kanter led the Celtics in both the scoring and rebounding departments, as he tallied team highs of 11 points and 10 boards. Five of those rebounds came on the offensive end, which accounted for more than half of Boston's nine offensive boards on the night.
The most impressive part about Kanter's double-double was that he pulled it off despite playing only 12 minutes and 39 seconds. Eleven Celtics logged more playing time than him, yet he managed to lead the team in two of the most important statistical categories.
Box Score Nuggets
- Steven Adams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander tied for the game-high in scoring with 17 points apeice.
- Enes Kanter led the Celtics in both scoring and rebounding, tallying 11 points and 10 boards in less than 13 minutes.
- Javonte Green, Marcus Smart and Tremont Waters all tied for the game lead in steals with three apiece.
- Waters also led the game in assists, dishing out five dimes in 16 minutes of action.
- The Thunder made twice as many three-pointers as the Celtics, as they knocked down 10-of-30 from deep.
- Daniel Theis logged the only block of the game for the Celtics.
- The Thunder led by as many as 18 points, while the Celtics never led by more than two.
- The Celtics' bench outscored OKC's second unit, 49-44.
- Boston also had an edge in fast-break points (12-11), points in the paint (52-50) and second-chance points (9-8).
- The Celtics dished out 25 assists to OKC's 19.
Quote of the Night
Jaylen Brown